Austria's 2010 vintage was a surprisingly lean one - cool and high in acid, although nothing like Germany's insane 2010s (go to: sfg.ly/JETSat). Yet that proved a perfect framework for Gruner Veltliner, a grape now re-emerging after an ill-conceived brush with celebrity.

Gruner has always been a serious grape, and the era of Gruner as catchphrase is mercifully on the wane.

That's a great thing, really. The prospect of turning Gruner Veltliner into just another flavor of the month did no one much service - not wine drinkers, who had it shoved at them as a Sauvignon Blanc analogue; not sommeliers, whose flirtation with the grape was brief indeed; not the Austrians, who have been sagely avoiding the sort of large-scale industrial winemaking that got them into trouble in the 1980s, when a scandal involving adulterated wine scuttled their prospects.

The dark side of all that groo-groo hype of recent years? It distracted white-wine lovers from Gruner's deeper charms: ripe fruit, deep minerality, enough savory flavors to flatter food that otherwise could be shrill: fava beans, asparagus, nettles.

Combine that with a vintage that may have taken time to shine - many 2010s are still just appearing on the West Coast - and the extraordinary strength of Austrian winemaking in recent years (a topic I'll revisit soon) and you have the makings of tremendously good wines for the money. That's precisely what you'll find here.

2010 Geyerhof Gaisberg Reserve Kremstal Gruner Veltliner ($38, 13.5% alcohol): The Maier family has long occupied a lesser known part of the Kremstal, on the south side of the Danube. While their Rosensteig ($25, 12%) is beautifully refreshing, the loess-filled Gaisberg vineyard offers up Gruner as meditative object: White spices and red apple, with all the Kremstal's filigreed delicacy but also a heady, warm side of ripe quince, pear liqueur and marjoram. Think sturgeon. (Importer: Blue Danube Wine Co.)

2010 Martin & Anna Arndorfer Strasser Weinberge Kamptal Reserve Gruner Veltliner ($22, 13%): Martin recently added his wife's name to the label, and this young winemaking power couple (Anna's father is the Kamptal's esteemed Karl Steininger) are part of a new crop of rising stars. This mix from the Gaisberg, Wechselberg and Stangl vineyards has an almost honeyed fruit side that meshes with its classic savory aspects of legume and coriander, and surprising weight for 2010. A friendly take on the vintage. (Importer: T. Elenteny Imports)

2010 Schloss Gobelsburg Gobelsburger Kamptal Gruner Veltliner ($17, 12.5%): Michi Moosbrugger's focus on precision at this historic estate has turned the basic Gobelsburger bottle into something very serious. It's impressive how much wine is here for the price, especially for a lean vintage. Ripe and cassia-tinged, with a richness to its apple fruit; its green side expresses more as dried poblano chile. Gruner that can sing across several octaves. (Importer: A Terry Theise Selection/Michael Skurnik Wines)

2010 Weingut Schwarzbock Austria Landwein Gruner Veltliner ($17/liter, 11.5%): Schwarzbock, located in Hagenbrunn, at the edge of Vienna, is a surprising forerunner in the Liter Wars. It edged out several others this time, with classic fresh bean and lentil aromas rounded out by lemon confit and pear. A wonderfully textural wine for a big bottle, full of white-pepper spice. (Importer: A Terry Theise Selection/Michael Skurnik Wines)

2010 Leth Steinagrund Wagram Gruner Veltliner ($18, 12.5%): This reliable name in the Wagram, on the broad planes north of the Danube, dialed in the vintage's intensity: sweet pea, grapefruit rind and a lush citrus quality that's matched by darker minerality. Serve it with fish in herb butter. (Importer: Domaine Select Wine Estates)